Dr. Jekyll and Ms. Hyde

Review by Thomas Glorieux:

Many will comment that Mark McKenzie is stuck performing lousy movies. Well not perhaps lousy movies but probably ones that people simply don't want to pay money for. I can understand it one way but on the other hand it is possible that not many people will discover the perks of certain things to come. For instance Mark McKenzie really gives it all he's got for creating this twisted but comical and at times magical score. Sometimes I wonder how on earth he does it and there are many moments that inspire more people then the movie probably had potential in breaking box office records. Dr. Jekyll and Ms. Hyde will probably sound better then you thought first but having discovered why Mark McKenzie is such a great composer it leaves me a bit disappointed when I heard those comical tones simply a bit too much. This score as many of Mark McKenzie's releases offers us the prime moment of any soundtrack, the 'Overture' with its ongoing thematic material of the original score. Here you will witness why this release deserves more attention, two amazing orchestral and magical fanfares of unique quality. Between it we find the main comical theme of Dr. Jekyll and Ms. Hyde, and in a way sometimes not far away from Beetlejuice. And sometimes the begin of the second fanfare reminds me of the great John Williams' with E.T., I do mean this for a second.

While I am simply stunned of McKenzie's transforming music it is the rest that basically could have sounded somewhat a bit better. I don't mean better of quality because it will top other efforts but maybe not so comical. I understand it and accept for what it has to achieve but I can not like it as the biggest and best music. And I perhaps wanted also a bit more of the magical fanfares and less of the sexy 'Irresistible Helen', comical 'A Little Surprise' or playful stuff 'Off to Work' and 'Charades'. No doubt to say that McKenzie will make the movie proud and the fans curious but I am not entirely for it. But I simply love the perfect transforming and magical fanfares in the begin 'Overture', the first seconds of 'Something Electrical' and the last moments of 'Final Transformation'. These will surprise any person thinking this will be another low quality soundtrack. Dr. Jekyll and Ms. Hyde has also one opera piece and while it sounds familiar it isn't really important for me. Mark McKenzie as always has some moments that do deserve attention and I feel that the movie and crew should be lucky with what they got as musical accompaniment. And maybe I am a bit disappointed with the end result but it is surely a big sign for movie directors that even for "this" project McKenzie can compose "that". You have to look at the bright spots and in this context you have to mention that Dr. Jekyll and Ms. Hyde surely is the have full glass instead of the half empty one.

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Tracks

Single Disc

1. Overture (6.09) Excellent Track

2. Old Movie Music (2.21)

3. Off To Work (2.20)

4. Great Grandfather's Books (2.37)

5. Something Electrical (2.17)

6. A Little Surprise (1.45)

7. Breakfast Transformation (2.34)

8. Charades (2.21)

9. Irresistible Helen (1.40)

10. Helen Deflates (2.03)

11. The Unstable Gene (2.12)

12. Taking Back My Chromosomes (1.57)

13. Narrow Escapes (2.16)

14. Footsy * (1.54)

15. Final Transformation (2.46) Excellent Track

16. Acid Love Potion (2.45)

* Habanera taken from the Opera Carmen by Georges Bizet, performed by Patricia Swanson

Total Length: 40.15

The use of artwork or photos is posted for non profitable reasons

=== Link to Composer Site: Mark McKenzie ===